Ericsson and Visa International have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to develop secure payment solutions for the purchase of goods and services over the Internet via a mobile terminal.
The partnership will develop mobile e-commerce and drive open standards for payment transactions over wireless networks. Ericsson and Visa will cooperate on providing a variety of payment solutions leveraging open standards such as the WAP, Bluetooth, SET Secure Electronic Transaction™ and EMV protocols to address different market requirements.
An area of cooperation will be developing a payment solution for mobile e-commerce using Ericsson's Bluetooth enabled wireless wallet. The wireless wallet, which can serve as a conventional wallet for bills and coins, contains multiple smart card readers. A smart card inserted into the wallet can communicate with a Bluetooth enabled mobile terminal. The mobile phone can be used for Internet shopping using the smart card in the wallet for payment. Bluetooth is a short-range radio frequency protocol that allows devices to interact remotely. It means the wallet can stay in the pocket of the user while interacting with the mobile phone.
Other joint activities undertaken by Ericsson and Visa will include participation on standards committees, market testing of prototypes and payment solutions, joint business development activities, and the development and adoption of other secure payment solutions, such as the SET Secure Electronic Transaction™ protocol, to a mobile environment.
Industry studies predict that within the next ten years, consumers will increasingly rely on non-PC devices, e.g. mobile phones, to access the Internet. This partnership will ensure that Visa member banks will be able to offer cardholders secure payment solutions for the purchase of on-line goods and services with a mobile phone.
"The advent of mobile phones which can access the Internet and receive messages over the air has provided Visa member banks with a whole new opportunity to offer convenient and exciting services to cardholders on the go," said Philip Yen, senior vice president of Internet and Access Channels at Visa International.
An example of a new service made possible by this technology is the targeted promotion of concert or theater tickets. This service will make it possible for mobile phone subscribers to be notified of an event before the tickets are sold out. The user can purchase the tickets immediately over the Internet using a WAP enabled mobile phone. The tickets are then sent electronically to the phone and are stored on the smart card residing in the wireless wallet. The user can arrive at the theater and present the smart card containing the electronic tickets.
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